Identity Theft Scam Threatens Arrest for Failing to Serve Jury Duty
A mass e-mail is going around. This one is legit. The e-mail is warning people about a telephone scam attempting to steal their identity. It says that con artists, pretending to be court officials, are calling people and threatening them with arrest because they failed to show up for jury duty. When you say that you never received a jury summons, the scammer asks you for your social security number and date of birth, in order to “verify the information and cancel the arrest warrant.”
This scam has effected at least 10 states, including Washington. KOMOTV.com says they found a warning about this jury scam posted on the Seattle Municipal Court website. The warning says that the court will never ask jurors for their Social Security Number over the phone.